


Apologies

by VanityShion



Series: Advent Calendar 2014 [4]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Advent Calendar Drabble, Blind Character, Good Severus Snape, Light Angst, M/M, Sevitus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-14
Updated: 2014-12-14
Packaged: 2018-03-01 10:34:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2769842
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VanityShion/pseuds/VanityShion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After a duel between Harry and Malfoy turns sour, Harry ends up in an awkward position that ends up being surprisingly beneficial. Also he and Malfoy kind of have a thing going with these duels. (What happened at Christmas, anyway?)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Goda](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Goda/gifts).



> The rating on this is just a guess, because I have a feeling there's going to be cursing in chapter two. That's also where the Harry/Draco will show up, so I think you can see why I would make that assumption.
> 
> Check out the rest of the series to see more drabbles in Harry Potter and other fandoms. They'll probably range from 200-500 words or so, except when they're longer, like this one. (I may've forgotten how much I like writing Sevitus...)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the prompt: Harry hated being taken care of. And he’d take Madam Pomfrey over Snape’s care any day of the week. Too bad he was the only one who could properly handle his potion.

If Harry were to become deaf, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. Sure, he likes to hear things as much as the next person, but his hearing isn’t a matter of life and death the majority of the time. Uncle Vernon and Dudley are both so massive that he can feel the vibrations of their footsteps anytime they’re around him, and Snape—the only other person whom Harry truly fears—is always silent in his movements, so it would make no difference.

There’s always Voldemort, of course, but honestly, Harry could do without hearing the insults even if it meant losing a bit of an edge in battle. Besides, most adult wizards cast nonverbally, and he’s pretty sure he can read lips well enough to see if it’s an Unforgivable. Combine that with the fact that the rest of the wizarding world is happy to gossip about him till world’s end, and yes, he could do without hearing.

His sight, however, is much, _much_ more important. It allows him to dodge blows, to keep track of where he’s going when he’s running, to avoid people he doesn’t want to see. Of course, he’s also Harry bloody Potter, so _naturally_ it would be his sight he loses to Malfoy’s spell…

“Potter!”

… and just his luck, it turns out that Snape is the only one who can heal him. Snape, the one person with whom Harry _really desperately_ needs his sight if he wants to survive an hour, let alone an entire week.

“Potter, come _here_ or I will have you in detention from now until sunrise.”

Harry bites back the retort that he can’t even see where “here” is and gets shakily to his feet. Trust Snape to either forget his actual malady or deliberately force him into an impossible situation. Holding his hands out in front of him to check for walls and other obstacles, Harry begins to carefully shuffle his way towards the sound of Snape’s voice.

Suddenly he’s fallen headfirst over the back of the couch he was sitting on, and it takes him almost a full ten seconds to piece together what just happened. Snape must have gotten impatient and tried to drag Harry to him, and Harry instinctively tried to get away—Merlin knows what Snape might do when Harry can’t see him, and even with the logical part of his brain Harry can’t quite let go of the image of Snape subjecting him to some sort of torture.

“Potter?” This time, the tone is oddly cautious, and Harry wonders if he’s hallucinating. Snape has never spoken to him with so little vitriol. A moment later his suspicion is all but confirmed, because he can actually hear the rustling of Snape’s robes as the professor approaches him slowly.

Harry abruptly realizes he’s lying practically upside down behind Snape’s couch and rights himself, nearly banging his head on the back of said couch in his haste. “I’m fine.”

“That is unlikely.” Snape’s voice is unnervingly close, but at least it’s _there_ and Harry manages to hold himself in place, albeit with some trembling. “Your potion is ready. I will be placing it in your hand. Be careful not to spill it.”

The next thing Harry knows, a long-fingered hand is prying apart Harry’s clenched fist, then wrapping Harry’s shorter fingers around what is unmistakably a vial. Snape’s touch now is so surprisingly gentle, especially after his earlier roughness, that Harry starts to think he hit his head much harder than he realized. Or maybe being in Snape’s quarters is enough to drive a person insane by default.

“Potter, your sight will have a zero percent chance of returning if you do not drink that potion within the next fifteen minutes.”

Harry lifts the vial carefully to his lips and swallows the potion in one gulp. It isn’t as horrible as some he’s tasted, although he still grimaces a bit, because it’s not exactly pleasant either. “This is definitely a bad idea,” he mutters. “Can’t you talk to Dumbledore again about putting me in the infirmary? Madam Pomfrey—”

“Madam Pomfrey is even less equipped to handle your current situation than I realized this afternoon,” says Snape smoothly. “ _Professor_ Dumbledore was quite right to place you with me. Allow me to help you to the couch.”

It’s obviously an order, but even the fact that it’s phrased as a request makes Harry’s head spin. Warily, he reaches out, and Snape’s hand grasps his elbow firmly but not painfully. With the professor’s help, Harry levers himself back to his feet and then finds himself being guided to sit on the couch again. The experience was strange enough with Dumbledore doing it half an hour ago—having _Snape_ lead him is surreal.

Then Snape says, “I apologize for startling you earlier. I will take care not to do so again,” and Harry is astounded that his head doesn’t actually explode with shock.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the prompt: It should have been just one more fight. One more moment to sneer in each other’s faces. But then Draco did something neither were expecting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not quite where I was expecting this to go, but there you have it. I might try to expand on this AU sometime, see where it takes me. I'm certainly feeling intrigued. *halfhearted glare at Heather for making too-interesting prompts*
> 
> (I know it's a bit of a stretch on the something-Draco-wasn't-expecting part, but let's just say he never thought before this month that he'd ever want to apologize to Harry Potter.)

Knock, knock.

“Mr. Malfoy is at the door again.”

“I don’t want to see him.”

Knock-knock-knock!

“He appears to be rather insistent.”

“I’m not talking to him.”

“Then perhaps you should open the door and tell him that, so that he might stop interrupting our quiet evening with his incessant pounding on the door,” says Snape silkily without rising from his armchair.

Harry, who has claimed the couch as per usual, reluctantly gets to his feet and reaches for his wizard’s cane, his stomach twisting in that odd way it always does when Snape uses words like “our” and “we.” It’s been a month since Harry’s ill-fated encounter with Malfoy and the subsequent attempt to get his sight back. The potion was unsuccessful, but Snape has used Harry’s continued blindness as an excuse to tutor the boy privately and take the rest of the term off from Potions teaching. It still baffles Harry a little as to why, but he has become strangely comfortable here, especially since Snape inexplicably started to be nicer to him.

The cane is a wonderful invention, really, because it allows him to get a sort of magical impression of the area in front of him, so that he doesn’t have to bump into things. Snape assures him that even if he remains blind, his other senses will improve to compensate and he won’t need the wizard’s cane forever. Harry still kind of hopes that Snape’s modifications to the cure potion will work and he won’t have to get used to anything else.

Knock-knock-BANG!

“I’m _coming_ ,” says Harry irritably. He yanks open the door and stares sightlessly out into the corridor, hoping to gain some intimidation points over Malfoy. “What do you want?”

“What in Merlin’s name is that thing?” says Malfoy’s snooty voice.

Harry scowls at him. “Maybe you should’ve looked this stuff up before hitting me with that spell.”

“I didn’t know what it did,” says Malfoy petulantly. “You can hardly blame me.”

“For using a spell you _didn’t recognize_?!” Harry didn’t think it was possible to hate Malfoy more for the events of a month ago. Clearly, he was wrong.

“Well, the book said it was a good spell for dueling!”

“And yet,” says Snape’s voice rather ominously from behind Harry, “dueling is not permitted in Hogwarts without supervision from a teacher. I believe that will be another two weeks of detention, Mr. Malfoy.”

Harry takes some small amount of pleasure in Malfoy’s spluttering, but he’d honestly rather have his sight back than see Malfoy in detention.

“All right, all _right_ ,” says Malfoy irritably. “It was stupid. I understand that now.”

“Congratulations,” says Harry. “Now go away.”

“But I want to—”

“ _I_ don’t want to talk to you. You’re not my friend, Malfoy,” Harry snaps. “What makes you think you have the right to stick your nose in the life that _you_ tried to ruin?” He would say Malfoy did ruin it, except that if he’s honest with himself, he’s not sure he regrets what happened. There’s the thing with Snape, after all. That all being said, he’s still furious with Malfoy for being such an _idiot_.

Malfoy sighs. “I was _about_ to say, I’m sorry.”

Harry finds himself speechless for a moment. Then he croaks out a weak, “What?”

“I’m sorry, all right? I was trying to make it a friendly duel, you know, like over Christmas—” Malfoy stops abruptly, possibly remembering that Snape is right behind Harry. “Anyway, I shouldn’t’ve used that spell. I only meant to have a bit of fun.”

“Fun,” says Harry flatly.

“Are you telling me you didn’t enjoy Christmas?”

“I’m beginning to wonder just what happened at Christmas,” Snape comments.

“Nothing,” says Harry hastily. “It was nothing. And I’m not—I’m really pissed at you right now, Malfoy, okay? I _don’t_ want to talk to you.” Before he can get himself tied up in further embarrassment, he shuts the door in Malfoy’s face.

“A friendly duel?” Snape prompts.

Harry sighs and lets his forehead fall gently against the closed door.


End file.
